Established 1961 15 Sports Wednesday, June 9, 2021 Nets clobber Bucks without Harden, take 2-0 series lead LOS ANGELES: Kevin Durant had 32 points and six assists as the Brooklyn Nets rolled to their largest playoff win in franchise history on Monday with a 125- 86 beat down of the Milwaukee Bucks in game two of their NBA series. Kyrie Irving finished with 22 points and four threes while Joe Harris and Bruce Brown each Morey fined scored 13 for the Nets, who seized a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series. Durant said $75,000 by NBA for he didn’t want to settle for anything less than a cham- pionship. “We still got a long ways to go,” he said. “When we play hard together, good things happen.” controversial tweet “I think we’re capable of greatness every single night,” Irving said. The series now switches to Milwaukee for game three tomorrow. “For the most LOS ANGELES: The National Basketball part we just did what we were supposed to do, win Association slapped Daryl Morey with a two at home and we’ve got to see if this game is going $75,000 fine on Monday after the Philadelphia to travel on the road for us and we’ve got to stay 76ers club president sent a tweet that the league locked in,” Durant said. said violated their anti-tampering rules. The The Nets were missing all-star James Harden with a league fined Morey after he wrote “join ‘em” hamstring injury but it is a situation they have become while sharing a social media post from Golden accustomed to all season long. A string of injuries has State Warriors star Stephen Curry that lauded limited the time that Durant, Irving and Harden have the play of his brother Seth Curry, who plays for been able to suit up in the same game, and they played Philadelphia. just eight games together during the regular season. The 33-year-old Stephen Curry is set to But once they got over the initial shock of Harden become a free agent in 2022. The Sixers were getting hurt in the first minute of game one, the Nets also hit with a $75,000 fine. Morey sought to haven’t looked back in winning both games at home in clarify his comment on Thursday by saying, “My BROOKLYN: Blake Griffin #2 of the Brooklyn Nets dunks the ball against the Milwaukee Bucks during Round 2, Game 2 of goodness folks I am talking about the fact that dominant style. The Nets led by as much as 49 points the 2021 NBA Playoffs on Monday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. — AFP in game two. Their 39-point win, in front of a crowd of we are all thrilled [Seth Curry] is here with the 15,700 at the Barclays Center arena, is their largest @sixers — nothing else!” playoff victory ever and the biggest since beating Miami series, we were up 4-0, and coming to this Elsewhere, Chris Paul finished with 21 points and 11 Morey has a history of making controversial Golden State in a regular season game by 41 points, series, I wasn’t high. Now that we’re down 2-0, I’m not assists to power the second seeded Phoenix Suns to a tweets. In 2019, he angered Chinese officials by 129-88, on February 2020. low,” Antetokounmpo said. Khris Middleton had 17, 122-105 win over the Denver Nuggets in the opening tweeting about the Hong Kong pro-democracy Giannis Antetokounmpo was held to just 18 points Jrue Holiday scored 13 and Brook Lopez and Bryn game of their second round series. Mikal Bridges protesters. Several Chinese companies said but still managed a triple double by adding 11 Forbes each scored 10 in the loss. scored 23 points, Devin Booker tallied 21 points, and they wouldn’t do business with the NBA rebounds and 10 assists for the Bucks, who have fallen “We feel like we’re better than the way we’re play- Deandre Ayton delivered 20 points and 10 rebounds because of Morey’s comments. Morey, the for- behind 2-0 in a second round playoff series for the ing and we know that,” guard Jrue Holiday said. “But at for Phoenix, who outscored the Nuggets 59-33 over mer GM of the Houston Rockets, was also fined second straight season. Milwaukee lost the first three this point, we can’t really be down. We’ve got to stay the final 20 minutes. Game two is tonight in Phoenix. $50,000 for tweeting about James Harden games to Miami before being eliminated in five games positive.” The Bucks have been let down by their Nikola Jokic finished with 22 points, nine rebounds and before he was traded from the Rockets to the during the second round last season. three-point shooting, missing 43 of 57 from beyond three blocked shots, Aaron Gordon scored 18 points Brooklyn Nets. — AFP “I don’t get too high, I don’t get too low. After the the arc in the first two contests. and Michael Porter added 15 points for Denver. — AFP Knicks coach Thibodeau named NBA coach of the year NEW YORK: New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau was named the NBA’s coach of the year on Monday following a successful season which saw the franchise return to the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Thibodeau, who was appointed to the Knicks coach- ing role last July, oversaw a transformation in fortunes in his first season in charge, helping the team finish 41-31. It marked the Knicks first winning season since their last playoff appearance eight years ago. The Knicks lost in the first round of this year’s Eastern Conference playoffs to the Atlanta Hawks. Thibodeau, a winner of the coach of the year acco- lade in 2010-2011 while with the Chicago Bulls, beat out fierce competition from Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams. Thibodeau received 43 first place votes to amass 351 total points, just ahead of Williams, who was second in the polling with 340 points after amassing 45 first place votes. Williams just missed out on completing a double of accolades after last month being named the National Basketball Coaches Association’s coach of the year. The coach of the year voting is carried out by a global panel of 100 sports journalists and broadcasters, with coaches earning five points for each first-place vote, three points for each second-place vote and one point for each third-place vote. Quin Snyder of the Utah Jazz finished third in the voting with 161 points while the Philadelphia 76ers’ Doc Rivers was fourth with 24 points. —AFP MONTREAL: The Montreal Canadiens salute the fans following their 3-2 overtime victory against the Winnipeg Jets to close out the series in Game Four of the Second Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell Centre on Monday in Montreal, Canada. — AFP Canadiens sweep Jets in four, first to reach NHL semi-finals LOS ANGELES: Tyler Toffoli scored 99 seconds Winnipeg netminder Connor Hellebuyck. favored Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games. into overtime to lift the upstart Montreal Canadiens “This team is playing as well as any team has ever Defenceman Logan Stanley scored both goals for to a 3-2 victory over Winnipeg Jets and a four-game played,” said Canadiens goalie Carey Price who made the Jets, who were without top scorer Mark sweep of their second round NHL playoff series. The 14 saves. Artturi Lehkonen also scored for Montreal Scheifele who was suspended for four games ear- fourth-seeded Canadiens eliminated the Jets by using in their Cinderella run through the postseason. The lier in the series for an illegal hit on Canadiens a tried-and-true formula that has worked well for Canadiens were the 16th and last team to book a forward Jake Evans. them in the playoffs — scoring first in all four games playoff spot and are the first to reach the league Elsewhere on Monday, Kyle Palmieri, Josh Bailey of the best-of-seven series. semi-finals. and Jordan Eberle all scored in the Islanders’ three- Erik Gustafsson opened the scoring Monday with They will play either the Colorado Avalanche goal second period as New York beat the Boston NEW YORK: Head Coach Tom Thibodeau of the New York a powerplay goal halfway through the first period in or the Vegas Golden Knights for a spot in the Bruins 5-4 to take a 3-2 lead in their series. Mat Knicks looks on during Round 1, Game 5 of the 2021 NBA front of a pandemic-limited crowd of 2,500 at the NHL finals. That quarter-final series is tied 2-2. Barzal and Brock Nelson also scored and Semyon Playoffs on June 2, 2021 at Madison Square Garden in New Bell Centre arena in Montreal. Toffoli scored his The Canadiens have won seven straight playoff Varlamov made 40 saves for the Islanders, who will York City, New York. — AFP fourth of the playoffs by taking a perfect pass from games since falling behind 3-1 in their first-round try to wrap up the series in game six at New York teammate Cole Caufield and blasting a one-timer past series where they rallied to oust the heavily tonight. — AFP after 372 matches for the Sydney Swans and twice months leading up to his retirement — abuse seen ball. The AFL and our game did not do enough to Indigenous AFL great won the AFL’s top Brownlow medal, was voted into as racially motivated and linked to an incident stand with him at the time, and call it out.” the Hall of Fame on the first year of his eligibility.